Thome

July 2018 is a significant milestone in the history of the Thome Group because it was 55 years ago this month that the company was first incorporated in Singapore.

The expansion of the business from its humble beginnings as an agent, broker and charterer to mainly Norwegian ship owners, to an internationally respected third-party ship management company, has mirrored Singapore’s own growth as a renowned global maritime centre.

The family run business has been successfully managed since Mr. Olav Eek Thorstensen, the Group’s Executive Chairman, took over sole ownership in 1981.

“I am deeply proud and humbled to have been part of the Thome Group and it is with sincere thanks to the hard work and dedication of all our employees that we have successfully grown into one of the largest and most respected ship management and shipping services companies in the world,” said Mr. Thorstensen.

“Ship Management is a more demanding business than ever before with more and more regulations covering safety and the environment, coupled with a greater desire by our principals for improved cost efficiency. However, our teams have risen to, and exceeded, these challenges so we remain extremely competitive.”

Gautam Kashyap, Thome’s Vice President for Business Development, outlined the Group’s strategies for success at the 2018 Connecticut Maritime Association shipping conference.

“Ship Management is changing and the right mix of digitalisation, automation and data analytics are key criteria towards providing greater efficiency, transparency and value-added services to clients in the future,” he said.

Ship Managers will need to invest heavily in new technology to keep up with changes in the market and Thome has already started this process by developing an Operations Hub, based at its headquarters in Singapore, which enables situational awareness for both duty-personnel and Thome’s crisis teams.

Two additional stages of improvements in the hub are planned. Stage two will further improve efficiency and availability through operational support functions like cargo handling, port turnaround and energy efficiency monitoring.

Stage three will concentrate on advanced support covering areas like cyber security, machinery condition assessment and trouble shooting.

Crew and onshore training is also crucial and Thome has a very comprehensive programme in place to ensure that all staff receive correct and relevant training for their roles which are updated on a regular basis.

In conclusion, Mr. Kashyap felt that a company’s size would be a critical factor in being able to meet customer demands and industry requirements in the future.

Thome has grown from humble origins to having a fleet of over 400 vessels, a crew pool of over 12,000 seafarers, a shore team of over 800 people and 11 worldwide offices. This means the Group can compete on a global scale and is ready for the challenges of the future.

“The Operations Hub means that we now have an even closer control of our managed fleet, offering our clients up to date information and even greater improvements in our ship management services. The monitoring capabilities provided by the hub will enable us to direct our managed fleet more efficiently saving time and improving our operational efficiency,” said Claes Eek Thorstensen, President and CCO of the Thome Group.

“Furthermore, in times of emergency we can react much more quickly and get faster and more accurate information about the situation in real time, allowing our crisis teams to make informed decisions on how to resolve any issues,” he continued.

A Military Sealift Command contracted ship diverted from its mission to perform a rescue at sea mission on July 7.

The Thome managed vessel, MT Nord Nightingale, was in transit from Houston, Texas, to Akrotiri, Cyprus, delivering fuel for the U.S. Air Force when it helped rescue two German sailors stranded at sea off the coast of Florida.

“The crew did an excellent job of redirecting their focus and assisting with rescue operations when we received the distress call,” said Capt. Nicolae Gainuse, MT Nord Nightingale master.

“You never set out on a delivery mission thinking you’re going to be rescuing people at sea, but fortunately we were in the right place to provide assistance.”

The distress call was received by the ship at approximately 3.10pm, at which point it called the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) Miami for additional details.

Gainuse then called Thome’s HSSEQ department and received its full support to proceed with the rescue operation. Less than 20 minutes after the distress call, the crew had changed course and were busy making preparations for the rescue.

Thome Ship Management Pte. Ltd., has opened a modern training facility in Makati city in the heart of the Philippines, so that its seafarers and cadets can practise using the latest equipment which will be the same as the machinery they encounter once onboard.

The Thome Training Workshop and Dormitory can accommodate up to 50 seafarers/cadets and comes complete with Wi-Fi, 10 standalone CBT computers, and various state-of-the-art facilities and equipment that meets the key vessel requirements of Thome’s principals.

Thome has welcomed the recent announcement by the minister of trade and industry S. Iswaran that the Singapore government is working in consultation with the marine and offshore engineering sectors, plus the region’s financial institutions, to review the possible need for measures to help them recover from the economic downturn prolonged by the recent slump in oil prices.

Government-backed loans are already provided which help small businesses deal with cash flow issues but the offshore sector has been particularly hard hit by the recession with thousands of job losses.

“A healthy marine industry is crucial to the Singapore economy and so it is good news that the government is taking a serious look at how it might help those sectors of the industry struggling to stay afloat.” said Claes Eek Thorstensen, President of the Thome Group.

Under the agreement, seafarers will have ready access to a steady supply of the latest-release movies for fully licensed onboard viewing

MIDDLETOWN, RI, and LIVERPOOL, UK – April 27, 2016 – KVH Media Group, the largest and leading distributor of licensed films to the maritime market, and part of KVH Industries, Inc., (Nasdaq: KVHI), has announced an agreement with Thome Ship Management to provide 41 Thome vessels with the MOVIElinkTM service. Part of the Thome Group, which is one of the world’s leading ship managers, Thome Ship Management will initially roll out the MOVIElink service to product tankers and LPG carriers. Read more →

The Thome Group has unveiled a brand new website for 2016 to streamline communications with its clients across the global shipping industry and showcase its comprehensive range of maritime services.

Thome Group of Companies is a dynamic provider of integrated ship management services to the international shipping and offshore industries. From ship management to offshore structure management, port agency, vessel inspection and crew training. Thome offers a complete range of services and products under one roof. Read more →

THOME Group in the Philippines has become the first local company to be accredited with Eco-Office certification.

The international ship manager has successfully completed an environmental audit throughout its Singapore offices to achieve Eco-Office status, which is regarded as the strictest of its kind in the region. Read more →

Thome Group, one of the world’s leading ship management companies, is pleased to announce that it has established a local presence in Norway by opening a new office in the premier shipping and ship-finance district of the nation’s capital, Oslo.

Norway is one of the premier ship-owning nations and its offshore fleet is the world’s second largest, which is why this marketplace is so important to Thome Group, which was established in Singapore 52 years ago.

The Thome Ship Management Norway AS office in Oslo is headed by Sverre Ditlev-Simonsen, newly appointed director of business development, and Sverre Eikestøl, who supervises the management of Thome’s NIS flag vessels. Ditlev-Simonsen will build on business and relationships developed in Norway by Olav Eek Thorstensen and Claes Eek Thorstensen.

Sverre Ditlev-Simonsen is a Norwegian native with extensive international shipping experience who will source business in the Norwegian market, in addition to serving key shipping markets in Europe and the United States. He said: “In today’s digitalised economy, the value of personal relations and local presence in shipping and offshore markets is increasingly important and having this office in Oslo will provide us with a valuable local base for our service provision.”

He added: “Ever-increasing international requirements related to safety, quality, crew competence and efficiency, together with a need to lower costs, have resulted in a rapid rise in the demand for third party ship management. Thome’s combination of personal contact, high standards and scale-based efficiencies places us as the forefront of our industry.”

Presently Thome Group manages vessels across all sectors, including 30 NIS flag vessels. Sverre Eikestol commented: “With the new and ongoing initiatives by the Norwegian Maritime Authority, and in case of a positive outcome of the Norwegian Government’s review of the NIS flag trading area restrictions, owners’ interest in registering vessels under NIS flag may increase.”

Thome Group Chief Executive Officer Olav Nortun said the establishment of the Norwegian office, which will be officially launched during Nor-Shipping, is a significant step forward for Thome Group. Our business is developing rapidly across the globe as an increasing number of ship owners recognise the benefits of our professional services and relationship orientedapproach. We feel confident that the new office in Norway will further reaffirm our long-term commitment to the important Norwegian shipping cluster”.

Leading international ship management company Thome Group is pleased to announce that it has become self-sufficient in recruiting junior officers thanks to its highly successful in-house cadet training program.

Launched in 2005 under Thome’s “Human Element” initiative, the Thome Global Cadet Program has already trained in excess of 1,350 cadets from at least 12 countries in Asia, Europe and the Far East. Currently there are 650 cadets at various stages of training on the program with another 200 due to join soon as deck, engine, electrical or catering cadets.

The success of this scheme has enabled Thome Group to fill all of its 2014 junior officer vacancies from within its own pool of trained seafarers.

Michael Elwert,Director of Group HR, HSSEQ & Crewing, said: “We place a great deal of importance on our cadet program and are delighted that it is proving so successful.”

He added: “We at Thome Group recognise the importance of providing quality training to our seafarers and the difference it makes towards them and ultimately the performance of the vessels they operate. We believe that training is the key to operating safe and efficient ships on greener seas. The level of training we provide is specialised and is over and above the standard recommended by STCW.”

Sartaj Gill, Deputy Managing Director (ROHQ) & Head of Group Training, explained: “As Thome Group continues with the large-scale and rapid expansion of its fleet, the requirement for suitably trained officers to serve onboard our tankers, bulkers, gas carriers and offshore has increased exponentially.

“Our cadet program has a robust selection process to ensure we recruit well rounded, excellent individuals who benefit from our high quality coaching. Our cadets are a multi-national and multi-cultural group, fully representative of the diversity with Thome Group. The feedback we have received from our cadets is that they view our training program as a successful highway to fulfilling their dreams and goals.”

One of the Thome Global Cadet Program’s most successful graduates is Chief Engineer Jonathan Duenas who graduated from the very first program in 2005 and has since become THOME Group’s youngest Chief Engineer. Jonathan reported: “Being able to be part of the Thome Cadet Program has not only given me an amazing opportunity, it has also given me a career that I’m passionate about. It shaped me to be a better decision maker and critical thinker.”

The Thome Group has announced the appointment of a new Chief Executive Officer, Olav Magnus Nortun, who will take up the position on 1st April, 2015.

Mr Nortun, a Norwegian national, brings with him vast experience in the maritime industry, especially in the areas of strategic development and governance of production, knowledge management and systems related to ship classification.

He has worked with DNV GL for many years in different locations around the world, culminating in his most recent role as Executive Vice President of its Classification Division. He has extensive in-field survey experience and has held management and project management positions in Norway, Holland, Japan, Korea and East Russia. He was Regional Manager, Maritime Korea and East Russia in addition to Board Chairman of DNV (China) Ltd.

He is a Master of Science in Naval Architecture from the Norwegian Institute of Technology with a post graduate in ‘Management in a Technological Environment’ in addition to attending Senior Management courses at INSEAD, Fontanebleau and IMD in Lausanne.

As part of the new appointment, Olav Eek Thorstensen will step aside as Group CEO but will continue as Thome Group Executive Chairman while Claes Eek Thorstensen will continue as Thome Group President.

President of the Thome Group Claes Eek Thorstensen said of the appointment:” I am delighted to announce the appointment of Olav Nortun as Group CEO for the Thome Group. Olav brings with him a broad international maritime experience which combined with the new perspectives and ideas he may have will, I believe, benefit the Group significantly in the months ahead.”